Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Hey there! First I want to introduce myself. My name is Bram Schrijver, I am 18 years old and I live in the Netherlands. Last week I bought myself my first Rickenbacker. It is a 4001 made in 1974, according to the serial number. A guy bought in on ebay, the guitar was used in Curacao. He didn't have any time restore it, and I wanted to give it a shot. The bass is bare and empty. I got some parts, but I dont have them all.
The Grover tuners are disassembled and it isn't easy to restore them. Also, a half a tuner is missing. I think I will buy a new set, maybe Hipshot HB5. I need a bridge pickup and a nut too! No idea where to find them.. Also the neckpickup is broken but I think it can be re-wound or something. First I want to buy all the parts before the bass will be refinished. I am considering Ice Blue Metallic.
I have got some questions. First, which size hexagon key (is that the right translation of 'inbussleutel'?) do I need to adjust the saddle-height? I think it must be something between 1.5 and 2.0 mm. Second, where can I find a bridge pickup? Finally, which tuners should I use to replace the broken and incomplete set of grovers?
Thanks a lot! Pictures!!!

Hi Bram, and welcome to the forums.

I'm not sure where you live, but if you're in Europe, there's a good English site - Sound Affects look under the SPARES menu - you can obtain neck & bridge pickups and a replacement nut.

If you're in the states, check out the RIC Boutique site whiich should have everything you need.

Good luck with the restoration!

Ash

Nice score! (If you're not familiar with it, that's a U.S. English slang way of saying "you found a really good deal"). Yes, you have a bit of a project ahead of you, but there are a lot of people on this site who can advise you on all aspects of it. Make sure you find out how to adjust the truss rods on a 4001!

While there are a lot of factors that contribute to the Rickenbacker sound, I personally believe that a lot of the magic is in the wood, and it looks your bass hasn't suffered any insults like routing out new cavities. Some new body binding and a nice refinish, and the rest is "just parts." You should have a really nice instrument when you're done.

I'll offer a small bit of help - I use a 5/64" Allen wrench (hex key) to adjust the bridge height on my '72. If I did the conversion correctly, that's 1.984 mm. I don't have a 2 mm, so I don't know whether that 0.016 mm difference is important. I suspect a 2 mm will work just fine.

Welcome to the forum, and please keep us posted as your restoration proceeds!

Thanks for your response guys! I am definitely going to order some parts from Sound Affects, I live in the Netherlands. Besides from the fact that the bass is stripped, the wood is untouched. I think the binding is easy to place because the edges of the wood are sharp. I won't refinish and replace the binding myself, a professional guitar builder will do it.

About the heaxgon key, I tried 2mm but that didn't fit, it was too big. I am going to buy a 1.8, a 1.9 and maybe 1.95 mm key if I can find them.

Hi Bram

If you'd like to send me a PM with your address, I'll happily send you the correct size hex key with no cost to you - I have lots of these lying around.

Ash

PM sent!

I tried to order from Sound Affects, but I couldn't place my order.. I don't know what's wrong, I will call them tomorrow.

Welcome! More Dutchies! Of course you know Bert H. He knows a lot about Ricks and restoring them but he's also on the Dutch BGF.

Chris P wrote:Welcome! More Dutchies! Of course you know Bert H. He knows a lot about Ricks and restoring them but he's also on the Dutch BGF.

Hey Chris! Thanks for your message! Next week I will be enjoying my vacation, after that I will continue the restoration progress. Still can't order from Sound Affects, had contact and I can order by email

Welcome to the Forum Bram. Cool project - I have a 74 4001 and love it! Keep an eye out for the tuners on Ebay and the marketplace on this forum. They popup every once in a while. I believe there were some threads around here that addressed rebuilding them using little screws and all. Good luck with it and please keep us posted as to the progress.

I love the skunkstripe, so I think the refinish will be see-trough. Maybe it will be this one:
http://www.gitarrentotal.ch/files/uberc ... ytotal.jpg


If I can't find Grover tuners, I will replace them with Rickenbacker 4003 tuners. They can be bought new and cheap, compared to Grovers. Still waiting for Sound Affects to complete my order... It seems that the website is some kind of broken, because I can't order here in The Netherlands. I'll keep you guys updated!! Thanks!

Hey Bram! Congrats on the Bass I have a '74 too, and like everyone who does I love it dearly. You might be able to have the parts that are pitted replated, also to have the Neck Pup rewound contact Sergio in "Winding up with the Best". Good Luck with your project it will be well worth it!

Looks like quite a project you have there, but I'm sure it will end up looking great. I've got a '76 that is wonderful, I used to have a '74 and wish I still had it because it was just a bit better than my '76.

The finish you showed looks a lot like what is called Burgundy and was an available finish in 1974. Here's some more pictures of Burgundy 4001 basses:
http://www.rickresource.com/register/ga ... =0&month=0

Burgundy is a lovely color!! The stripe really stands out in the finish!

Sepp

Hey Bram, nice project! One of my basses is a '74 and I'm glad the previous owners left the neck bound so you have red dots. You'll love that neck when you have it all set up. Burgundy Ricks remind me of Cliff (Burton) and Cliff makes me smile. So, +1 for Burgundy. I noticed the rest of the binding was gone and I know of this shop that has replacements.

http://www.winfieldvintage.com/parts/binding.html

Also, if you haven't found this section of the Forum, please have a look at:

Reflections of a Curmudgeon: by Paul Wilczynski
Exceptional restoration is in the details

viewforum.php?f=14

It's well worth your time. Good luck with the restoration!

A belated welcome, Bram!

You can also post a Wanted thread in this section:

viewforum.php?f=12

for any parts you need and see whether there are any Forumites with them for sale.